SpaceX's Starship mega rocket launches for a test flight from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, on January 16, 2025.
Eric Gay | AP
The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday that SpaceX's Starship rocket is grounded until the company and the regulator complete an investigation into the mid-flight failure of the most recent test flight, which forced airlines to divert flights.
The regulator said in a statement that while there have been “no reports of public damage,” it has received “reports of damage to public property in the Turks and Caicos Islands” of the Caribbean.
SpaceX must complete the investigation and implement any necessary corrective actions before the FAA will grant the company a new license to launch Starship again.
The FAA diverted and delayed dozens of commercial airline flights, including several operated by american airlines, JetBlue Airways and Delta Airlines – after the Starship rocket exploded and shed debris minutes after launch on Thursday.
SpaceX said in a statement that it believes a fire in the vehicle caused Starship to break up. Videos posted on social media by people in the region showed the rocket detonating in space.
Orange balls of light fly through the sky as debris from a SpaceX rocket launched in Texas is seen over the Turks and Caicos Islands on January 16, 2025.
Marco Haworth@marcusahaworth | Marcus Haworth via Reuters
Notably, the FAA says it activated a “Debris Response Area” to warn aircraft about falling debris “outside of closed areas identified as hazardous to aircraft.”
Before rocket launches, the FAA publishes “Aircraft Hazard Areas” that tell pilots where debris can fall if something goes wrong during launch.
A map of “aircraft danger areas” released ahead of the seventh flight of SpaceX's Starship.
Federal Aviation Administration
SpaceX initially posted a statement on its website Thursday that Starship debris fell “into the Atlantic Ocean within predefined danger areas,” apparently contradicting the FAA's explanation for why a “Safety Area” was activated. Response to Waste”.
As of Friday morning, SpaceX's latest statement did not include that specific language. The company's website said more generally that “any surviving pieces of debris would have fallen into the designated danger area” after the failure.
The FAA, in response to CNBC's request to clarify whether the Starship wreckage landed outside the predefined danger area, reiterated that its “information is preliminary and subject to change.” SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment.
